


And Then The Hat Bellowed

by long_furb



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Albus Dumbledore Bashing, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Gay Draco Malfoy, Gay Panic, Good Slytherins, Harry Potter Has ADHD, Harry Potter has Anxiety, Internalized Homophobia, Kinda, Lucius Malfoy's A+ Parenting, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Harry Potter, Redeemed Draco Malfoy, Slytherin Harry Potter, bi harry potter, draco learns to not be racist, i love hagrid w my whole being, ron learns to not hate slytherins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:02:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26877127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/long_furb/pseuds/long_furb
Summary: With rumors of the seemingly inherently evil Slytherins swirling around in his mind, Harry is horrified when in his first year he's sorted into said house.  After a few years, a few realizations, and a few new friends (and possibly more-than), that slowly changes.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 8
Kudos: 46





	1. SLYTHERIN

Standing in line with nearly every other first year, Harry had never felt so nervous. He stood, staring at the old crumpled hat that sat atop a newly-declared Hufflepuff girl’s dark curls. He shifted his weight from side to side subconsciously, picking at the skin on the edges of his nails.  
Harry hadn’t known much of the wizarding world before being whisked off to Hogwarts, though when he said he’d wished to know more, he didn’t realize he’d be wracked with such anxiety.  
The only thoughts crossing through his had were ‘What if I get put in Slytherin?’ and ‘What if I get put in Hufflepuff?’, consuming his mind with paranoid thoughts. Slytherin, the house of the bad guys, and Hufflepuff, the house of those unwanted. He couldn’t bear to think about what may happen if he didn’t get sorted into the two other houses, not after what Ron, who he’d met on the train earlier that day, had told him. Though Ravenclaw wouldn’t be all that good either. According to Ron, anyway.  
Harry had only just learned of his true identity, and of his status in the wizarding world. He could not let the Boy Who Lived be a failure as well as Harry.  
There goes that boy who lost his toad, Neville, to Gryffindor, and that know-it-all girl, Hermione, too.  
And then his only sort-of friend, Ron, joining his brothers decked in maroon and gold.  
And the stern woman, Professor McGonagall, calls Harry’s name.  
For a moment, Harry’s legs are like stone, He feels rooted to the spot, caught in the middle of picking at his cuticle. Then, before he knows what’s happening, the brim of the sorting hat covers his eyes.  
And once more, all he can think is ‘Not Slytherin.’  
He hears the hat tut at him.  
“Why not? You could do great things, and Slytherin could help get you there. Why not Slytherin?” The hat hisses in his year.  
He thinks again, ‘Just not Slytherin.”  
“Hm, interesting.” The hat continues, “You are an interesting child indeed, however, I believe you will be changing your tune soon.”  
A moment passes where Harry is baffled by the response.  
A moment passes.  
Then he realizes, just as the sorting hat bellowed out to the whole hall, “SLYTHERIN!”

The moments following are tense, filled with whispers of students from the other houses seeming to somehow drown out the cheer from Slytherin table. Harry is hyperaware of the eyes burning holes into his back, and how he, head down, reluctantly walks over to Slytherin’s table.  
He feels an upperclassman clap him on the shoulder, and hears at least two others speak to him, but all he could do was make eye contact with Ron, who wore a frown and knitted brows. Ron, who looked nearly betrayed.  
Somehow that look from a boy he barely knows hurts.

___________________________

The Slytherin dorms were underground. Stone rooms covered in green and silver that felt like dungeons to Harry, whose cuticle now had blood pooling around the edges. He could only half-listen to the prefect girl that was explaining how dorms work, too busy having his gut tied in a knot. The girl dismissed the first years to their dorms with a wave of her hand.  
Harry stood, staring at the floor, before dragging his feet along to go to his dorm.  
The walk, which must’ve only been ten feet to the left, felt like an eternity to Harry. Swinging open the door took nearly all the strength in his right arm, though if that was because of how thin he was or because of his current state he could not tell.  
As he enters the room, three other boys his age turn to look up at him.  
He doesn’t meet their eyes.  
Harry just stumbles his way to one of the four-poster beds that lay empty, with his withered trunk laying at its end.  
One of the other boys, one the bed to his right, slowly asked, “Are you alright?”  
Harry didn’t answer.


	2. Ron Hates Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First year hasn't been so great so far.

It had been a while since the sorting ceremony. Harry was nearly used to life at Hogwarts, he’d even been going down to Hagrid’s for tea. But one thing still plagued his mind. 

The red-haired boy he’d met on the first day. With skin heavily freckled and a kind smile. Ron wasn’t much like that now. Despite Harry trying to reach out, saying hello to him in the hall, asking Ron to be his partner in Potions (which they had with the Gryffindors), Ron always just looked the other way. Or just declined, disgust painting his features. It’d been weeks of this. Sometimes, Harry would get angry, clenching his fists and mumbling to himself. Other times, he’d feel sad. He’d feel as if he’d done something to deserve this, despite having done no such thing. He’d cried during the night multiple time, praying that the obnoxious blond and the other boys were asleep. He didn’t want to be the butt of every joke here too.

Speaking of the obnoxious blond, Draco Malfoy, he’d been constantly harassing Harry. At least that’s how Harry saw it. Asking him questions that sounded like mocking. It only fueled Harry’s emotional dumpster fire, made him angry, made him hate Slytherin even more.

There Harry sat, moping in the library, studying for Potions, something else weighing heavily on his mind. Slowly turning each page, letting the words go in one ear and out the other. He couldn’t stop zoning out. Harry pushed his glasses up his nose.

“Potter!”

The call shook Harry from his zoning. His head snapped up, to see Malfoy standing over his table. Madam Pince also seemed quite disturbed by it.

“We’ve got flying lessons today. We need to head down.” 

Harry blinked slowly, then got up. 

“Why are you helping me?” Harry asked as the two walked down the hallway. Crabbe and Goyle, the two boys Malfoy was usually around, were nowhere to be seen. 

“What d’you mean?” Malfoy snorted “I just didn’t want Madam Hooch to take off points for your being late.”

* * *

During class, the small bit of friendliness between Harry and Draco disappeared. Draco chose to pick on the forgetful Gryffindor boy --- Harry remembered his name, Neville Longbottom. Harry couldn’t stand to see it.

“Give it back, Malfoy,” Harry said.

“Hah, or what? What’re you going to do, Potter?” Draco laughed.

“I’ll-- I’ll take it from you!” said Harry, looking Draco in the eye.

“Oh? I’d love to see you try.” A smirk appeared on Draco’s thin face.

* * *

After that day, Harry got two month’s worth of detentions. When Professor McGonagall dragged him off, he’d had a (now stupid-seeming) fantasy of her giving him a spot on the quidditch team. No such thing occurred. Instead, after speaking with Dumbledore, Professor Snape, head of Slytherin house, gave him detention with Mr. Filch, the decrepit, cruel caretaker. 

Though one good thing did arise from the event. Ron Weasley, who had previously been avoiding him like the plague, now spoke to Harry. Ron wouldn’t protest with being paired with Harry in class, and would tolerate his presence. They exchanged friendly hello’s. It wasn’t quite friendship, but Harry would take what he could get.

And eventually Ron became friends with the know-it-all Gryffindor girl, Hermione. So she was kind to him as well. It was certainly a start.


End file.
